A Wrinkle In Time
by Elias Pedro
Summary: File 04: Formalize, Mami and Sasayama survive the tenement arson ordeal and Inspector Kougami calls for an immediate strategy meeting. With the Area Stress hitting all-time highs, Mami and her cadets, mere auxiliaries of the MSWB may be in danger - but Shinya believes he has a solution to protect them. [Edited Mar. 28]
1. Chapter 1

**...**

"My legs! My legs!"

A young lady, a foreigner in her twenties, cried in fear and acute pain. Her voice echoed through the empty alleyways, but nobody heard her. She had been running away in a maddened rush, but her legs suddenly started to tense up, forcing her to an abrupt halt. Though her legs stopped moving, inertia forced her down to the ground.

"Hah... hah..."

The young lady's breathing became heavy. The numbness that had ravaged her legs was crawling up to her hips. Her entire lower half was cramping up unnaturally. She wildly turned her head down to her legs and saw a trail of blood tracing down the path she had ran. Then, she heard footsteps.

"No... please..."

She begged desperately as a figure approached. The silhouette of a person came into view and the young lady's desperation grew.

"WHAT DID I EVER DO TO YOU!?"

"Gertrud Wickerstadt." The clear voice of the figure reached the young lady's ears.

"H-how did you know my name?" Gertrud asked, her eyes glazed over in fear.

"I know you, Gertrud... from another place... another time." The figure spoke calmly.

"What the HELL are you talking about?"

As Gertrud protested, the cramping reached her chest and constricted her lungs. She couldn't speak, her demand reduced to nothing more than short, pained breaths.

"Gertrud. You and I do not belong in this world. I'm here to take you and the others back."

The others? Who were these 'others' this figure was talking about? She would have no time to ponder.

The figure produced a shining stick of metal – a golf club. Gertrud's eyes widened in absolute horror. She wanted to flee, but her cramped body would not respond. As her face started to stiffen, she couldn't even wince. All she could do was watch the figure approach her with the golf club raised.

"Farewell."

A clean metallic strike rang clear in the alleyways, followed by the sound of fracture. Though Gertrud's horrified face did not move, tears ran down her cheeks.

Then, blood ran down her temple.

…

**MSWB Cold Case 088 – Wrinkle In Time**

**First File: The Auxiliary Unit**

...

"Three murders in a row, all of them in the same night. This is one prolific killer we have here. Ain't that right, Kou?" A young man with short hair puffed a cigarette as he spoke.

"That seems to be the case, Sayama." Inspector Kougami Shinya agreed, "The MWSB already has its hands full with this damn Specimen Case too."

Kougami Shinya and Sayama, an Enforcer of The Ministry of Welfare and Public Safety Bureau (MWSB), were walking together through the streets of the Roppongi District, Minato Ward – the area where the recent slew of murders took place.

"Think that the Specimen Case killer's the one we're after today too, Kou?" Asked Sayama, an Enforcer.

"No..." Kougami shook his head, "The modus operandi seems to be different, so are the target patterns. This second killer of ours is going after foreigners; Gertrud Wickerstadt, Izabel de la Fuente, Patricia Reginald... all of them are foreigners."

"Hmm... that is true..." Enforcer Sayama hummed.

"In any case, the MWSB Unit 1 can't take on all of these cases at once." Kougami then said, "That's why we're headed to the MWSB Roppongi District Front Office. They have some fresh boots on the ground for us."

The two men reached the doors of a small building of glass and steel. Enforcer Sayama spat out his cigarette and stomped on it. The two of them then carried on inside. Upon entering, a bright voice greeted them.

"Inspector Shinya, Enforcer Sayama. Welcome to the Roppongi Front Office."

They turned to the source of the voice and saw four ladies in sharp coats, ties and skirts. Enforcer Sayama seemed rather happy, but Kougami jabbed him with an elbow to keep him in line.

The lady who called to them was the eldest of the four with curled golden hair and a warm disposition.

"Assistant Inspector Mami Tomoe." Kougami acknowledged her welcome. "I assume this is the team you have assembled to field for this case."

"Yes." Mami nodded. "Cadets Sayaka Miki, Kyouko Sakura and Madoka Kaname."

The three juniors stepped forward as they were called and gave respectfully low bows to Unit 1's Inspector and Enforcer.

"These girls are all still wet behind the ears and are total rookies compared to the Enforcers and Inspectors of Unit 1, but they have passed basic police courses and have been drilled on using the Dominator. Together, we are the Roppongi District Auxiliary Unit."

One of them seemed especially anxious about being out on the field for the first time.

"W-we look forward to working with you, Inspector Shinya!" Cadet Madoka Kaname, a timid-looking girl with pink hair and the youngest of the group, stammered.

"Your enthusiasm is good, but you should stay professional." Kougami advised, "This is completely different from Cadet School and their textbook cases. Your life is on the line here, and you're dealing with real criminal minds. Stay sharp, Cadet Kaname."

"Yes sir." Madoka gave Kougami a salute. The Inspector normally didn't do such formalities, but returned the gesture out of respect.

"Now then, back to business." Kougami said. He then tapped the bracelet on his wrist and a formless screen was projected in midair. "We have three crime scenes to investigate today. I'll send you the data from the Drones now so you can check them on our way there."

"There's three crime scenes and six of us." Enforcer Sayama said, scratching his chin in thought, "The faster we investigate the scenes, the better. What do you say we split up into pairs, Kou?"

"That's what I was thinking." Kougami agreed, "We'll split up into three pairs and investigate separately. If anything comes up, you have our access numbers. We keep each other informed. Also… Dominators will be provided for us on the scene."

Cadet Kaname gulped nervously at the mention of the Dominator.

"Understood." Mami nodded, "How do you want us to deploy?"

Inspector Kougami gave his team a quick glance then quickly gave them their assignments.

"Cadets Sakura and Miki can investigate the Izabel scene at the shoreline – Miki-san will be the point-person."

"Eh? Sayaka?" Kyouko sounded unimpressed, but kept herself from saying more. Sayaka gave the red-haired girl a smug smirk.

"Assistant Inspector Tomoe, I want you to investigate the Patricia scene at the Minato Ward tenements with Enforcer Sayama."

"Oh! Sweet!" Sayama was delighted to be paired with a female Inspector for once, or an Assistant Inspector at least.

"I'll be in your care, Sayama-san." Mami gave the Enforcer a courteous bow. It was a chance for her to try out the duties of a fully-fledged Inspector for size.

"The pleasure is mine, Tomoe-san." Sayama replied, matching her courtesy with his own.

"Lastly," Kougami continued, "Cadet Kaname and I will investigate the Gertrud scene in the Upper Minato-ward alleyways."

"Y-yes sir!" Madoka saluted again. This time, Kougami just smiled.

"Let's move out."

The three pairs made their way out the door and headed out towards their destinations. As Madoka walked towards one of the Bureau's cars with Inspector Kougami, the young Cadet looked out to the city skyline painted orange in the setting sun with wandering eyes.

"Kaname-san? Is something the matter?"

"O-oh! Sorry, Shinya-san!"

Some way, somehow, she felt as if someone was watching her. She just didn't know who was watching her… or why.

**To Be Continued**

…

Author Notes: Another experimental crossover I've had in mind for a while now. This one's a crossover of Psycho-Pass and Puella Magi Madoka Magica, both of which have Gen involved. I just couldn't resist giving this one a try.


	2. Chapter 2

The place smelled awfully sterile. 'Scentless' they called it – free from any sort of fragrance or aroma whether sweet or putrid. It was a smell of emptiness, fitting for a mental hospital. A young woman in her early twenties awoke to this 'scentless' smell and found herself lying in bed.

There were no chains that bound her hands or feet and her body was not wrapped in a long-jacket. The walls weren't even made up of the soft material that prevented suicide. In the room where she lay, there weren't any special means to prevent her from escaping or from taking her own life. Those measures, though, would be rather unnecessary. The young woman was barely aware that she was awake. The young woman barely had the will to breathe – or even to live.

It was another case of 'eustress deficiency', whispered the doctors and nurses amongst themselves as they came and left the room to observe her. They shook their heads but didn't really know what to do. They were already providing her with the best physical and mental healthcare that the state could provide. Her crime coefficient was already markedly low at '8' while her Psycho-Pass was a clear, bright purple. Despite all of this the girl showed no signs of improving. As a matter of fact, the girl had already slipped into limbo.

She hasn't had any visitors since the day she was checked into the hospital. The doctors couldn't find any family members on the Sibyl database to contact and it seemed that she didn't have any friends. Her only affiliation on the database was from her schooling in Mitakihara District, Yokohama over at the Kanagawa Prefecture but that was from a while back already. Her classmates would already have started their careers by now.

Thus, the girl spent her time alone, hooked up to the hospital monitors day and night. Her blank eyes looked up to the blank ceiling sometimes. She didn't wonder what lay beyond the concrete, nor did she wish to go outside. She only wondered when her suffering would end.

One night, this girl did have a visitor. One of the doctors came in at an unusual time – right after the nurses finished preparing to ease her into sleep again. The doctor was tall with a head of silver hair and sharp, golden eyes. In his hands, he cradled a hardbound copy of Goethe's Faust. Then, on his face was a cool and composed smile – a smile that roused the half-dead girl.

Color returned to the girl's eyes and her strength flowed back into her once lifeless arms and back. She sprung up to face the doctor, totally aghast and furious.

"You're…!"

Then, the clock struck nine and the tranquilizers kicked in. The girl was robbed of her strength and the image of this doctor started to blur into nothingness.

…

**MSWB Cold Case 088 – A Wrinkle In Time**

**Second File: Convergence**

…

Shinya Kougami's car sailed through the highway that afternoon on the way to the crime scene at the Upper Minato-ward alleyways. The Inspector was at the wheel while the cadet sat at the passenger's seat and looked out through the window. She was looking intently at the cityscape.

"Kaname-san, you aren't from the Capitol aren't you?"

Inspector Kougami turned to his passenger and asked, startling the cadet.

"Y-yeah… I'm just amazed at how similar this city looks to Yokohama."

"Yokohama, huh? I guess that makes us both from Kanagawa, then."

"R-really!?"

The Inspector then pulled out a digital ID from his coat pocket and let it display his driver's license. It was a license from the Kanagawa Prefecture. That little fact made the young cadet feel much more at ease. Ever since she had gotten into the car, she felt absolutely tense being with an actual professional Inspector of the MSWB.

"You know, Kaname-san, society has been converging together – more and more with each passing year. Naturally, urban planners are part of society, so their plans start to look more and more alike as you can see. Economists have been talking about convergence for a while now."

"Oh, like Mr. Robert Solow and all of those other theorists."

"Exactly. You know your economics well, Kaname-san."

"Thank you… but isn't it strange, Kougami-san? With the Sibyl system and all… what if everything and everyone just… becomes the same, you know… like…"

Madoka fidgeted as she tried to find the words to say. The Inspector, though, could already tell what the cadet was getting at.

"I don't think that will happen, Kaname-san. Every person is unique and special, each of them born into this world to do something that only they can do. That sort of thing… purpose, maybe, can't be measured by numbers."

Madoka nodded in agreement. It's an archaic thought, but she too believed in 'purpose'. Not just the sort of designation handed down by Sibyl, but some sort of purpose meant only for one specific person. However, a thought lingered in her mind.

"Do you hate the Sibyl system, then, Kougami-san?"

"Not necessarily. It's not perfect, but it does what it's supposed to do. If people can live at peace and find happiness in it, then I have no qualms with it. After all – it's all that we really have now."

That was true. Without the Sibyl system in place, what would be left to protect this town and its citizens? Madoka could only wonder. Shinya, though, would interrupt her thoughts.

"We're almost at the crime scene, Kaname-san. There are a few things I need to go over with you and the others."

The inspector activated a formless digital screen on the dashboard of the car and started to make a call. The portrait of an attractive blonde lady appeared and her playful voice rang through the speakers.

"Oh, a call from the dashing young Inspector, huh? Dropping a line to make a move on me, Shinya-kun~?"

Shinya shook his head and chuckled.

"Trust me, Karamori, if I wanted to make a move on you, you'd know."

The person at the end of the line seemed amused.

"Is that so? So what's up then?"

"Sasayama and I already met up with the Auxiliaries and we've split up to deploy to the three crime scenes. I wanted to have the Auxiliaries' ID's patched into our communications and I need a dedicated operational line for the six of us."

"… okay, and the point-persons for the comms are?"

"Assistant Inspector Tomoe, Cadet Sakura and myself."

"Not Sasayama-kun? Harsh~"

"If I gave Sasayama the point, he'd just try and flirt with the girls in the other team."

Karamori gave off an audible sigh.

"Hah… very true… so that's done and done. Anything else, Shinya-kun?"

"Yes. Double-check for me that the Auxiliaries have authorization to wield Dominators."

The sound of the tapping of keyboards came through the speakers, followed by an emphatic hit of the 'enter' key.

"They've got authorization, but only a limited one was issued. Orders came from that old hag Chief Kasei herself – they can't use anything above the Paralyzer. That's all they'll really need, though, right?"

Shinya's eyes sharpened.

"I hope they won't have to use the Dominators at all."

…

"Assistant Inspector Tomoe reporting in. We're just outside the tenements now, right on schedule."

"Kyouko here – we're at the shore… uh… over and out."

"This is Shinya Kougami. We've arrived at Upper Minato without incident. Begin your investigations and report in anything and everything you find. Stay sharp, everyone."

"Roger that!"

…

"Yech… this place is filthy."

Enforcer Sasayama spat on the ground as he walked towards the front entrance of the tenement complex. The Assistant Inspector shook her head and stepped out of their car to join her ward. The two of them would then see a pair of police drones awaiting them at the entrance, doing a cymatic scan of everyone who entered and left the complex. Two more drones were roving around the perimeter as well and one drone was stationed at the top floor hallways where the crime scene was.

"This place is an old tenement complex that has been long due for renovation. Luckily, there's enough signal strength to operate drones."

Mami explained as she checked the blueprints of the complex from her wristband's digital display.

"The Dominators should be able to work fine too, by the looks of things."

"Hehe, that's good to hear, Tomoe-san."

The two of them reached the entrance and found the MSWB trolley cloaked from plain sight near the two police drones. The transparent trolley became opaque as Mami and Sasayama approached and it opened for them. Inside, there were two pieces of the MSWB's chief weapon – the Dominator. Sasayama drew one of the Dominators as if it was second nature, but Mami picked hers up much more carefully and listened to the directional voice word per word.

"_Dominator Portable Psychological Diagnosis and Suppression System has been activated."_

"_User Identification, Assistant Inspector Mami Tomoe. Affiliation: MSWB Roppongi Auxiliary Office."_

"_Dominator usage approval with restrictions confirmed. You are a valid limited user."_

"Limited user? That means it really is just the Paralyzer for me, huh."

Mami mumbled to herself as she holstered the gun. Sasayama then grinned.

"That's right. So if there's any killing that needs to be done, leave it to me."

"If our perpetrator has a lick of sense, he or she would have run away from the crime scene unless they want to be apprehended by the MSWB. They should know that we'd be coming to sweep the scene."

"Trust me, Tomoe-san, those perps would know that. The problem is, some of them might _want_ us to come. That's why we get issued Dominators at crime scenes."

"Right…"

With that, Mami holstered her Dominator and the two of them entered the complex together. Within the complex, it didn't come as a surprise that the many impoverished residents and the countless informal settlers there were still going about their daily businesses. None of them really paid heed to the police drones or the advisories aired out in the nearby speakers – they rarely did to begin with. Only the top floor, marked with digital crime scene tape, was relatively quiet.

Mami and Sasayama climbed up to the top floor and found the body quite easily, sprawled out in a sorry posture. It looked as if she was beaten down as she was trying to struggle back up to her feet. There were traces of blood flowing from her mouth and dried tears on the bridge of her nose.

"Patricia Reginald, age 25, American citizen…"

Mami read the victim's details out to Sasayama.

"Cause of death is one serious beating – something blunt but with a bit of a wedge… a golf club, maybe?"

Sasayama deduced, squinting as he looked at the body closely. Mami was impressed by how quickly he came to a conclusion – and a logical one at that. The mini forensic spider drones came in and collected data and the ballistics report did, in fact, highlight a golf club as the possible murder weapon. The drones, though, found another peculiarity that escaped even Sasayama's keen eye.

The body was unnaturally stiff – the result of a systematic blood clot that would have shut her body down muscle by muscle. Only the external tissue and muscle, though, was affected. Her internal organs were, by the standards of dead people, in good shape. However, this alone would have made it almost impossible for her to move.

"It would have been as if she was frozen in time. The killer must have wanted them to suffer."

Sasayama jested. Mami wasn't amused. Then, her wristband's display suddenly turned on.

"_This is Shinya Kougami. Tomoe-san, how goes the investigation on your side?"_

Mami raised her wristband and its screen up to her face and spoke.

"We've had no interference so far. The forensic drones dug up some unusual data. The victim suffered systematic blood clots that stiffened the body but did not kill."

"_We found the same thing with our victim. Cadets Sakura and Miki say they're finding similar data as well._"

"It's the same modus operandi then…"

Suddenly, an electrical snap echoed through the complex, startling Mami and Sasayama. The residents below were frightened as well. Many of them started filing out of the complex. They were wondering what it was but didn't really want to have to find out. Then, the police drone and the forensic drones that had been gathering data suddenly ceased to operate.

"_What's going on?_"

"There's a power failure in the tenement. We just lost our relay station so our drones are knocked out, but our communications are still online… our Dominators are working too."

"_That's not good. We'll have a team from the Department of Energy come over to investigate and put our relay back online. Can the two of you keep civilians from tampering with the crime scene until then?"_

"We will do our best."

The communication link was closed and Mami told the Enforcer about their new assignment. He thought it was going to be a piece of cake. There was only one way to get up to the top floor of the tenement after all and the crowds below were dispersing. With two Dominators at the ready, they could take on anyone who tries to force their way up the stairwell. However, a strange smell wafted around in the air.

"What's that?"

Mami sniffed but couldn't put a finger on what the smell was, or where it was coming from. She and Sasayama walked around the top floor hallway but couldn't find the source of the smell. Then, Sasayama's eyes bulged open in realization.

"Tomoe-san, that smell… it's gasoline!"

Sasayama rushed over to the edge of the hallway railings and saw a scrappy man throwing away a freshly emptied container of gasoline onto the second floor's hallway and its walls. The Enforcer pointed his gun at the man, but the man already threw a lighter behind him as he fled down the stairs. The entire second floor - the floor below them - was immediately set ablaze.

**To Be Continued**


	3. Chapter 3

**MSWB Cold Case 088: A Wrinkle In Time**

**Third File: Dormant**

…

Screams of panic echoed from the Minato-Ward tenements that afternoon. Throngs of residents and informal settlers flooded out of the complex running for their dear lives and a pillar of black smoke rose up to the clear blue sky. Passers-by gathered around the scene quickly. Some of them were frightened by the raging gasoline frames. The rest of them didn't really understand what was going on.

In the smoldering corridors of the tenements, Assistant Inspector Mami Tomoe and the Enforcer Sasayama watched as the gasoline flames hungrily ate up the aging building. Sweat dripped down Mami's brow as she tried to plan her next move. Sasayama, though, already had a clear goal in mind.

"_Crime Coefficient is… over 170. He is a target for enforcement action._"

The arsonist gasped as he saw the blue light of Sasayama's Dominator from behind the flames. He ducked and rushed down the stairwell. A blast of energy whizzed over his head, missing him by mere inches and fizzling on the nearby wall.

"Stay still, goddamn it!"

Sasayama cursed, swinging his Dominator angrily. However, the flames menacingly rose up to the ledges, forcing Sasayama away. Smoke started to fill the third floor hallways and it was getting harder and harder to breathe. Debris also started to fall from the ceiling. The building wasn't going to stay standing for long.

"We have to get out of here!"

Mami raised up her wristband and made it display the blueprints she had been checking out earlier. She then received an incoming call. It was from Inspector Kougami.

"_Tomoe-san! There's reports of a fire in your area. What's the situation?_"

"It's an arson, Kou! The Patricia scene was a trap!"

Sasayama spoke through Mami's wristband angrily. The Assistant Inspector was at a loss for words and let Sasayama explain their situation.

"_I'll get a dispatch from the fire department, ASAP. The two of you sit tight!_"

"I don't know about that, Kou… this place is falling apart fast. I wouldn't give it more than twenty minutes... or at least _we_ wont."

"T-there's a fire exit here! It's in the blueprints! We might be able to make it out of here."

Mami finally spoke. She showed the blueprint to the Enforcer and sent it to Kougami.

"_It's right across the hallway from where the two of you are. Get over there, now!"_

The Enforcer and the Assistant Inspector nodded and the two of them rushed to where the emergency exit supposedly was and found a large metal door. The whole door was rusted over and covered in graffiti but traces of the label 'fire exit' could be seen in faint white paint. Sasayama reached for the doorknob without second thought but the knob wouldn't even turn. The harder he tried, the more frustrated he got.

Shivers started to run up Mami's spine. Her breaths were short and her eyes were losing their focus. She turned to the raging flames behind her then back to the door and she looked absolutely wild. The stairwell that should have been their defensive bottleneck was now an inferno. The emergency exit was derelict and unmovable. They were trapped in this burning building. The crime scene she had been assigned to investigate and protect was going to be compromised. She was going to fail her mission and she was going to die.

"_Tomoe-san!_"

Kougami's voice seemed distant to Mami.

"_Oy, Tomoe-san!_"

The MSWB Inspector's voice was nothing but a blur to Mami at that point. The reality of the situation dawned on her and her mind was blanking out. Mami held onto her elbows with her cold and shaky hands, almost as if seeking comfort from them. As she felt the fabric of the blue Inspector's coat she wore over her dress-shirt, though, only bitterness arose. Then a voice called out to her.

"Assistant Inspector-san… if you really plan to become an Inspector with the MSWB, you gotta keep a cool head in tight situations like these!"

"… A cool… head? B-but…!"

Mami wanted to retort, but she could see that Sasayama had not given up hope yet. As a matter of fact, he was still looking around, wondering if there was a door he could break open. All of the doors were shut tight and were mate of metal, but he still tried to find some way out of this inferno. He was even considering jumping down the full three stories from the ledges if he had to.

"Tomoe-san, if an Inspector loses his or her cool, we Enforcers start to lose confidence as well. You guys are here to give us guidance, you know. You guys are like our mentors."

"Mentor…"

That word resonated with Mami well. It resonated with her in a way that she couldn't explain or hope to explain. It was almost as if that word awakened something that had been lying dormant in her heart. The faces of her three cadets came to mind. She can't let those three aspiring girls down like this.

The warmth returned to her hand and her once clouded mind became clear again. Her logic shifted to its top gear and an aura of intensity was set about her. Sasayama noticed the change. The Assistant Inspector then got to work.

"Kougami-san! Are you still there?"

"_I'm still here, Tomoe-san. The fire crews are almost there – hold on._"

"We don't have time to wait for the fire crews. This building won't last that long and our perpetrator is getting away."

"_Tomoe-san! You don't have to worry about the arso…_"

"Sasayama-kun and I will get out of this, Kougami-san, and we will catch that arsonist. There are just two things I'd like to ask from you."

There was silence on the other end of the line for a moment before Shinya agreed to listen to her requests.

"Firstly, if there are any other relay stations nearby, would it be possible to boost its range one way or another?"

"… _Karamori might be able to find a way._"

"Thank you. And secondly, I'd like to have full control over the police drones assigned to this scene- all five of them._"_

Shinya gasped. He realized just what Mami was trying to do. With a tone more confident than concerned now, Shinya spoke.

"_It's done. Good luck, Tomoe-san_."

As Mami cut the communication link, a muffled yet welcome sound filled the hallways. The police drone that had been knocked out earlier was able to reboot and was already running over to their side. Sasayama was nothing short of impressed.

"Well then, Tomoe-san. What's the game plan?_"_

"We're going to use the drones to chase after our arsonist and to corner him. Then we'll take him into custody – we need to find out why they were targeting us like that. But before all of that, we have to get through this fire exit door."

The police drone arrived at their side. Through her wristband, Mami made the drone face the door then voiced out her order.

"Door Breach!"

The breaching blast from the drone sent the rusted metal door flying from its hinges. Behind the door was a secondary stairwell still unaffected by the fires below. Mami and Sasayama drew out their Dominators then rushed down the stairs and out of the building. Once they got out of the emergency exit, Sasayama caught a glimpse of a familiar scrappy man.

"Tomoe-san, he's over there!"

The arsonist saw the two detectives and the Dominators they held and was terrified. He thought that the two of them would have died in the fire, but there they were looking for him. He thought that he was seeing ghosts… or demons. He turned around and rushed for the nearby side-streets to find a place to hide.

"Drones in pursuit formation!"

Mami barked out her order to her wrist-watch and the five drones went off into the alleyway to chase after the arsonist. She then turned to the Enforcer and spoke in her calm and composed voice.

"The drones will drive him into a corner. We just have to get there and catch him."

"Roger that!"

Sasayama was more than happy to get such an order.

"We'll split up, Sasayama-kun. We can cover more ground that way."

"Are you sure you want to go alone, Tomoe-san?"

"I'm certain. Let's go!"

With Dominators in hand, Mami and Sasayama dashed into the alleyways. They combed the path, constantly checking their navigation on their wristbands. Sasayama picked up his pace and tried to close the distance between him and the red dot on his map. His prey was close and his excitement was rising. Then, an angry howl reached his ears.

Waiting at the corner that Sasayama just turned was another man holding up an aluminum baseball bat. The man threw the bat down at Sasayama with every ounce of his strength, but the Enforcer just grinned.

Sasayama raised up his arms to block the blow. He then pushed the batter aside then lunged forward with lighting speed. Sasayama threw a punch that connected with and rattled the batter's ribs. He then raised his head up and head-butted the staggered batter who fell limply to the ground. The Enforcer then knelt down by the helpless man and pointed the Dominator at his face.

"_Crime coefficient is… over 250._"

Sasayama pulled the trigger and the broken batter was shivering wildly before getting knocked out. The Enforcer would have much rather riled the batter up some more. For a moment, he felt like he wanted to use the Lethal Eliminator, but he didn't have time for that. Mami Tomoe was all alone in this alleyway chasing the arsonist. Who knows what else awaited them in that darkness? He feared the worst. He had to regroup with Mami.

The Enforcer got back on his feet and chased after that red dot on the map again.

…

Down another route in the alleyway, Mami was hot on the tail of the arsonist. She tried not to mind the darkness of the alleyway or the unpleasant stench of the sewers below them. Her mind was focused on the mission now. This case had to be closed, no matter what.

The Assistant Enforcer's wristband then received a call. It was from Sasayama.

"_Tomoe-san, bad news. This perp of ours has friends helping him escape. One of them tried to come at me with a bat_._ I have a feeling this guy has more buddies hanging around…_"

"I've already requested for backup from Kougami-san. He and my Cadets are already en route here to help us sweep up the area… but the arsonist is our main target right now."

"_I know that… but stay on your toes… gah! Another one, goddamn it!_"

Sasayama ended the call and Mami gritted her teeth. She stayed her course and followed the red dot through the alleyways. She then found their arsonist going down a long, narrow path. However, there was a most ominous sight at Mami's feet. One of the drones she had sent into the fray now lay broken on the ground.

She then heard footsteps running towards her. A third man was coming at her with a switchblade. Mami's eyes grew sharp.

Mami anticipated the swing of the knife and blocked it with her wristband. She then tugged the man's knife-arm and tugged him towards her. The Assistant Inspector then hurled an elbow straight into his chest, incapacitating him. With the enemy down, Mami took out her Dominator and aimed at the fleeing arsonist.

"_Crime Coefficient is… over 320. Lethal Eliminator is locked by user restriction. Enforcement mode is Non-Lethal Paralyzer."_

Mami pulled the trigger and the burst of energy struck the arsonist in the back. The arsonist fell helplessly to his knees. Sasayama arrived at Mami's position and saw the Assistant Inspector panting heavily. However, she was composed and confident. Their mission was completed.

Sasayama smiled at Mami and she smiled back. A gentle breeze blew through the alleyway and rustled the Inspector's coat that she wore. The Enforcer grew to respect Mami that day. This woman wasn't someone to be trifled with, he thought. This woman was well on her way to becoming a fully-fledged Inspector. Then he joked to himself,

"_At least this girl's melons aren't her only asset._"

Somehow, she looked good in that Inspector's coat.

…

"... Tiro Finale, huh?"

From the window of a nearby apartment building, a young woman with long black hair looked onto the scene through a pair of binoculars. Her sights were focused on the Assistant Inspector who now started cleaning up the scene and rounding up their assailants with handcuffs. The confident smile that Mami wore and the professional and proper air about her would have brightened up the day of her colleagues, but all of this just made the young woman frown.

The young woman turned away and retreated back into her room. On the end table by the window was a copy of Goethe's Faust. Atop the book were a handful of 2x2 pictures, most of them young women of about her age. The pictures of Patricia, Izabel and Gertrud were crossed out with black marker ink.

A cell phone then rang in the woman's pocket. She picked up the phone and answered.

"_Well then, young miss. Were you entertained?_"

"I've confirmed something I wanted to see, but this is only the beginning."

"_Of course, of course. You still have a lot of targets on your list, after all._"

"That's right."

The young woman then laid a hand on the cover of Goethe's Faust before clenching it into a fist.

"I'll be counting on you, Choe Gu-song."

**To Be Continued**


	4. Chapter 4

Madoka Kaname felt her heart racing, beating hard against her chest. She sat in the passenger's seat of Inspector Kougami's car but she couldn't stand sitting down any longer. Formless screens on her side of the car dashboard displayed news reports of the fire that broke out in the tenements. It was the crime scene that Enforcer Sasayama and her colleague, Mami Tomoe, were sent out to investigate. The young cadet watched the raging flames with horror and held tightly onto a peculiar weapon sitting on her lap – the Dominator.

This wasn't boot camp any more. This was an actual assignment. Mistakes made here wouldn't be paid for by just grades and rankings now. Those mistakes could be paid for in blood.

Madoka shook her head. No matter how fearful she was, though, there still was an anchor of composure that kept her on her feet. At the very least, she tried to stay calm.

"You're quite composed for a cadet, Kaname-san."

Inspector Kougami spoke as he weaved his car through the highway traffic of the capital. His eyes shifted from the road to his side of the car's dashboard beside the speedometer. Instead of the news, Shinya was monitoring a tactical map of the area where Mami and Sasayama were in. The fire was starting to spread throughout the block and the Area Stress levels there were approaching the minimum regulation limits. Madoka stole a glance at the screen then clenched her fists.

"An officer of the MSWB has to be composed, especially when the lives of others are on the line. Isn't that right, Kougami-san?"

Shinya was pleased to hear this.

"Good response... but today, we really do have a lot on our plates."

The car changed lanes and zipped into an interchange for the Minato Ward. Shinya slowed the car down as they funneled back into the main city thoroughfare. Just as the Area Stress suggested, that district of the Minato Ward was rather tense. The pillar of smoke and the panicked cries of people from the tenements raised the Area Stress by quite a bit. The blare of the police sirens of Shinya's car too added fuel to the fire. Madoka watched this tense district with worried eyes.

Amongst this rising panic, though, Madoka saw a lone figure, a young woman, walking through the sidewalks with absolute calm. The young woman looked at Madoka and their eyes met for but a moment. The young woman's purple eyes captivated the cadet, but Madoka couldn't understand why. Shinya's car sped past and the figure disappeared behind them.

...

"Citizen, you are under arrest on the grounds of violations of the provisions of the Citizen's Charter..."

Mami Tomoe recited the textbook arrest phrase of the MSWB as she put handcuffs on their incapacitated perpetrators. She and Enforcer Sasayama rounded up a total of eight men in the alleyways. Five of them were stunned by the Paralyzer, but the other three were black and blue. As Mami started to put the cuffs on the last three, she shook her head.

"These three men are barely breathing, Sasayama-kun. Back before the Sibyl System was put in place, this could have been have been a human rights violation."

The Enforcer chuckled at Mami's exaggerated remark. He put a cigarette in his mouth and lit it.

"Whether it's the Paralyzer or a good ole knuckle sandwich, these criminals had to be taken down."

He then pointed at the last incapacitated criminal with his thumb and gave Mami a grin.

"And this last guy was _your_ handiwork, Tomoe-san. You've got some moves."

Mami twisted her lips. She couldn't retort Sasayama's counter – she clearly remembered beating that man into submission. The Assistant Inspector was only graded with a decent B-rank in hand-to-hand combat and was never truly fond of having to fight in close quarters. However, she routed the aggressive attacker handily almost as if it were second nature to her. Her hand brushed against the sleeves of her Inspector's jacket and smiled.

"Thanks, Sasayama-kun. I will take that as a compliment."

The Enforcer raised an eyebrow at Mami's response then smiled. It wasn't very often that an Inspector thanked an Enforcer, after all. Just as the two of them were about to start another headcount of their perpetrators, she heard an electrical crackle followed by the clicking of a tongue.

"Tch... the party's over already."

Mami turned around and found Kyouko and Sayaka headed over to them from one of the alleys with weapons in hand. Sayaka fidgeted as she held onto the Dominator while Kyouko twirled a Stun Baton in her hands. The red-haired cadet would catch and squeeze the Stun Baton, making it crackle with electricity. The spark seemed to entertain Kyouko who was itching for a fight. Sayaka, though, didn't seem to share this enthusiasm.

"Just be glad that we got the perps and that Mami-san is okay."

Kyouko snorted a little at the mention of Mami's name. She pocketed the Stun Baton and turned away from Sayaka and the Assistant Inspector.

"Whatever..."

...

**MSWB Cold Case 088 – A Wrinkle in Time**

**Fourth File: Formalize**

...

Once all of the criminals were rounded up and sent off to the MSWB headquarters, Inspector Kougami immediately gathered the girls of the Roppongi auxiliary together. In the back of an MSWB paddy wagon, Enforcer Sasayama sat together with Mami and her cadets while the spiky-haired Inspector stood before them.

The six of them were going over the details of their investigation together. Inspector Kougami gathered all of the data the three teams dug up from their investigations and displayed them on a digital screen at the back of the truck.

"I've already packaged the data and sent it to Karamori at HQ for analysis..." Shinya folded his arms and looked at the screen, "but I think we ourselves can make some conclusions out of this. Assistant Inspector Tomoe, could you please elaborate on your findings?"

"Certainly."

Mami got up from her seat and joined the Inspector by the screen. Shinya stepped to the side and let her lead the discussion. The Assistant Inspector cleared her throat and gave her analysis.

"Sasayama-kun and I believe that the same person killed Gertrud, Izabel and Patricia. The states of the victims at the scenes were all the same – all three of them were battered hard. The murder weapon must have been blunt, like a baseball bat or a golf club... but there are traces of slash marks on all three of them as well."

Mami brought up some pictures of the three bodies and zoomed in to their slash marks. They weren't very prominent, but they looked rather suspicious. Madoka and Sayaka cringed at the sight of the marks while Kyouko wasn't exactly paying attention. Sasayama and Kougami just observed the findings with a very professional air about them. Mami then carried on, mulling over some more minor details before she finished.

"And that concludes my analysis."

Mami sat back down and let Shinya took center stage again to speak.

"Now then... we are all aware of what happened earlier to Tomoe-san and Sasayama at the Minato-ward tenements. Whether or not we were able to apprehend the killer of the three foreigners today, it's easy to see that Tomoe-san and Sasayama were set up in a trap."

A bead of sweat ran down Mami's brow as she remembered the incident. She wiped the sweat and sat up straight as Shinya continued.

"It used to be uncommon for criminals to band together like they did today. Under the Sibyl System, those people who are plotting crimes would be easy to detect and these criminals are disheartened from taking action. However, the Area Stress levels throughout the capital prefecture have been at an all time high."

Kyouko clicked her tongue and leaned against her chair, drawing everyone's attention to herself.

"All of that Area Stress crap's got something to do with all of those underground anarchists running about, isn't it?" The red-haired cadet spoke in a frustrated voice, "Seriously, can't we just go find their headquarters and crack some skulls?"

Mami Tomoe and the other two cadets weren't exactly pleased with Kyouko's outburst – Madoka especially so. The young, pink-haired cadet turned to Inspector Kougami to see what he thought about the matter.

"That would only be a band-aid solution to the problem, Sakura-san." Shinya replied a little sharply, "Sasayama here tried to go gung-ho on one of the anarchists' venues and the whole operation went out of control."

"Oy, oy – I did what needed to be done." Sasayama tried to defend himself, "Whether it was that live house or somewhere else, those Molotov cocktails were going to be used somewhere."

Shinya exhaled lightly, gathered his composure and spoke again.

"Raids only solve the problem in the short run, you see. The MSWB has done many raids over the past month, but the problem still persists. Rather than deter the criminals and anarchists, they're emboldened to act against us. For every criminal anarchist we capture, another one would come to take their place and join the movement."

"If that's the case..." Sasayama groaned, "then I wouldn't be surprised if one or all of those creeps have links to those anarchists."

"Gino will be the judge of that, Sasayama." Shinya chuckled, "That guy has a penchant for interrogations, after all."

"No kidding." Sasayama agreed entirely.

"In any case," Shinya continued, "storming the anarchists is a short-term solution, Sakura-san. What we need to do at the MWSB CID is to find a long-term solution to this problem. We have to bring those anarchists back into society. Until this matter is fully resolved, we, the staff of the MSWB have to be constantly vigilant."

The Inspector then smiled at the girls of the auxiliary.

"That's why I've recommended to the Chief that the Roppongi Front Office should be recognized as an official division of the MSWB's CID. So far, the Chief seems open to the idea. We _are_ short on manpower after all."

Mami and her cadets gasped. They couldn't believe their ears. Their little intermediate office was going to become a fully-fledged MSWB division?

"When my recommendation pulls through, your unit will have to adopt the standard MSWB division format. This means that your unit will need two Inspectors assigned to it. So far, I believe that Assistant Inspector Tomoe would be first in line for that promotion. She is the most senior among you and she performed her duties well today."

Kyouko closed her eyes and sank into her seat with a sour mood. She wasn't very fond of hearing Mami get praised, but it wasn't like she could complain. Mami _was_ the most senior of the four of them and had the best aptitude for the role. Subtle jealousy nibbled away at the red-haired cadet.

In any case, with the way things stood, the second Inspector position was up for grabs. The other two who weren't chosen would retain their ranks as cadets.

"Aside from Inspectors and Cadets, though," Shinya continued, "a unit of the MSWB would have to have Enforcers attached to them. They are very useful in investigations as they have a knack for analyzing crime rather well. Most importantly, though, given the persistently high Area Stress, these Enforcers will be vital for your protection. Until we can find you guys some suitable Enforcers, we at Division 1 would share our Enforcers with you."

"Finding Enforcers, huh...?" Mami hummed, "The boots on the ground..."

"When I get word back about the official decision of the Chief, I'll inform you guys posthaste." Shinya then said, "With that, you're dismissed for today."

Inspector Kougami led the girls out of the paddy wagon, but Sasayama stayed in his seat.

"Enforcer Sasayama isn't coming with you, Kougami-san?" Mami asked. She turned to glance at the Enforcer who was leaning forward in his seat.

"He's going to be transported back to our HQ by paddy wagon." Shinya explained, "I honestly don't think it's necessary, but those are MSWB guidelines."

The girls all watched as the back door of the paddy wagon closed and as Enforcer Sasayama disappeared into the darkness. Madoka felt a hint of pity for the Enforcer, but this was part of the job. She wasn't exactly in a position to question the rules of the MSWB.

...

In her small, dark analysis lab, Shion Karamori sat on her computer chair and filed her nails without a care in the world. The data that Inspector Kougami had sent her just a few minutes ago was being processed by her forensic analysis software and the blonde analyst was just trying to pass the time.

"Hah... I should be out in the field too to get a look at all this interesting stuff with my own eyes." Shion closed her right eye and looked at her filed nails with a smile, "Wouldn't that be nice?"

Then, a small beep echoed throughout the room. The analysis of the packaged data was complete. Shion set the nail file aside and hit the enter button to start running through all of the results. Her brows crumpled as she started to find some oddities with the victims' deaths. All three of them experienced a severe and unnatural rigor mortis while they were still alive.

"Severe blood clots...? No... this has to be induced..."

Shion typed on her keyboard like a whirlwind and brought up countless windows of reference material. She drew out a cigarette, lit it, and took a big puff as she started not to like what she was seeing in the data. The cigarette burned through quickly as the analyst's eyes bulged open with realization.

"This has to be plastination... I need another cigarette."

...

"Hmm... I wonder if I should call him...?" Sayaka thought as she raised her wristband up to her eyes. There was a picture of a young man on the screen of her band. "Nah... I'll surprise him today."

The blue-haired cadet hummed a happy tune as she entered the doors of the Tokyo University Hospital. Visiting the hospital became part of her daily routine lately, so she felt rather comfortable within the hospital's sterile walls. A particular tune came to mind as she walked through the patients' wing - La Fille Aux Chevaux de Lin by Debussy. It was one of her favorite tunes, and one of the favorites of the young man she was visiting.

Kyousuke Kamijou was a childhood friend of hers who she had been fond of for quite some time now. He was a brilliant violinist and had been pretty successful at his art for as long as she can remember. However, less than a month ago, Kyousuke was involved in a serious car accident that maimed his left hand severely. Since then, he has been hospitalized and Sayaka regularly visited him to check up on him and to cheer him on.

"Hey, Sayaka..." Kyousuke asked his visitor, "How was work today?"

"Asking me about that again..." Sayaka tried to chastise him for asking, but quickly became flushed instead, "Y-you know that work in the MSWB is classified stuff."

"Oh, right." Kyousuke smiled, "I guess I just want to hear something about the world outside these walls. I really just want to get out of here..."

"Well, you know what the doctor said last time - there's still a chance that your hand will recover. If that happens, then you'll be able to get back to playing the violin!"

"Oh, I can't wait for that." Kyousuke said. He too was rather hopeful about his condition. Surely, with all of the advancements in medical science, there would be a way to revitalize his hand. He held out a hope for that. He had held out that hope since the start of the month.

However... when the doctor came to him that evening, his hopes were dashed against the rocks.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I NEED A PROSTHETIC!?" Kyousuke lashed out at his doctor who told him the unwelcome news, "THAT MEANS... THAT MEANS..."

The internal structure of his hand was determined to be beyond mending. Apparently, the doctors knew about the impossibility of it all along but held their tongues until then. As long as even the smallest sliver of hope remained for recovery, they stayed silent and worked hard. At that point, though, it became clear that there was truly nothing else they could do. Kyousuke would either have to live with a severely deformed hand or get a prosthetic hand that would not let him play his beloved violin.

Sayaka was at his bedside when the news was revealed to him. The cadet was speechless as she watched Kyousuke thrash about in rage. He couldn't accept this sort of reality and his emotions slowly started to get the better of him. Sayaka always knew that Kyousuke was an emotional type. It was the very reason that she wanted to visit him regularly throughout his hospitalization.

Then, in the middle of the shouting, a police drone rolled into the patient's room. Kyousuke saw the drone look at him and he fell silent. Sayaka too saw the drone and a look of utter horror was drawn on her face. She knew all too well the reason why the drone came for him at that moment. Her worst fear had been realized.

"Kyousuke Kamijou," the drone announced, "your Crime Coefficient has risen above 100. You are to be detained for emergency therapy immediately."

"N-no... no way..."

The drone then turned to the cadet and spoke.

"Cadet Sayaka Miki of the Roppongi Front Office, please perform your duty."

Sayaka's heart sank. Her eyes turned from the drone to the desperate Kyousuke and she was at a loss for words. She shakily reached for the back compartment of the drone and fished out a pair of handcuffs.

"S-Sayaka-chan... please, don't do this."

The cadet lowered her head in apology. With a heavy heart, Sayaka bitterly recited the textbook phrase she had practiced so many times before.

"Kyousuke Kamijou, you are under arrest on the grounds of a violation of the provisions of the Citizen's Charter."

**To Be Continued**

...


	5. Chapter 5

The interrogation room at the MSWB CID Headquarters was deafeningly silent that morning. The arsonist who burned the Patricia scene sat at one end of the room with shaky, fidgeting hands. He was sweating profusely and his breathing was heavy. His eyes scanned left and right and he saw his own reflection against the room's one-way mirrors. He knew he was being watched.

Sitting opposite to him was a young man wearing a sharp coat and a dark green tie. A pair of glasses sat on the bridge of his nose, and the eyes behind these lenses were scathingly sharp. Just looking at this man's eyes made the arsonist quiver in fear. This was Nobuchika Ginoza, the second Inspector of the MSWB Division 01. He stared straight at the arsonist seated before him with a stern face and an accusing aura about him.

"Don't lie to me, criminal." Nobuchika lashed, "I can see it in your eyes – you know something. Spit it out."

"B-but I…"

"You can't hide the truth from me…" The bespectacled Inspector's glare intensified. He took out a peculiar gun, the Dominator, and placed it on the table with a steely thud, "And you can't hide the truth from Sibyl's eyes."

…

**MSWB Cold Case 088 – A Wrinkle In Time**

**Fifth File – Vision**

…

Nobuchika walked out of the interrogation room and into the observation room. From the threshold, he watched as the arsonist was escorted out of the room by a police drone. The arsonist was mentally broken and full of remorse, but Nobuchika was unaffected by his 'handiwork'.

"All part of a day's work, eh Gino?" Inspector Kougami jested as Inspector Ginoza closed the door behind him. Shinya had been watching the interrogation all that time, "You really don't hold anything back in your questioning."

"If I held myself back, I wouldn't be able to get the truth out of them, Kougami." Nobuchika tried to defend himself, "On top of that, I get results."

"I saw that." Shinya's tone slowly shifted from jest to praise, "He admitted to being connected to the anarchists."

"With a Crime Coefficient that high, I wouldn't be surprised…" Nobuchika clicked his tongue, "These latent criminals are all the same."

Shinya turned to his partner and was just about to interrupt him, but he held his tongue. Nobuchika truly loathed latent criminals. Nothing Shinya could say would change that and he knew that. He also knew the reason why the bespectacled Inspector thought as such. Thus, Shinya folded his arms and changed the subject.

"Gino, has the chief said anything yet about the new unit?"

"You mean Provisional Division 06?" Nobuchika raised his brow, "No, not yet. Chief Kasei said that she was still discussing it with her superiors. You know the bureaucracy, Kougami, don't count on it happening anytime soon."

Shinya sighed and put his hands in his pockets.

"Say, Kougami… what do you think of those girls?" Nobuchika raised up his wristband and brought up the profiles of the girls of the Roppongi Front Office, "Do you really think they're cut out to become a Division?"

"I wrote up a report last night after we parted ways." Shinya checked the girls' profiles as well as he spoke, "Assistant Inspector Tomoe performed well for a first assignment and Cadet Sakura definitely has the aptitude, I'll give them that. Kyouko Sakura's A+ in the preliminary combat rating isn't something to scoff at. The other two, though… only have enthusiasm."

"I can see that being the case," Nobuchika said. His screen displayed the profiles of Madoka Kaname and Sayaka Miki. The grades of their preliminary MSWB assessment weren't very promising. "It would be wise to keep their clearance for the Dominator at Paralyzer."

"That might be a good decision for now." Shinya nodded, "Until the Chief decides that they've put their act together."

…

It was 9AM in the morning at the Roppongi Front Office. The lights of auxiliary unit's workspace turned on as Mami Tomoe entered the room. The Assistant Inspector was the first person to work as always. As the most senior officer of the MSWB in the Front Office, she made it a point to be punctual at work and to be professional in everything she did. Her role as the supervisor of the Front Office affected the assessment of her cadets as well as her own, after all, so she had to be her best day in and day out. The golden-haired Assistant Inspector fixed the collar of her dress-shirt, patted her light brown coat and walked through the workspace towards her desk.

Mami's desk was at the rightmost corner of the room and was the largest and most prominent. Every time she sat behind that desk, though, she always felt as if that desk of hers was much too large. Their workspace, compared to the workspace of the official divisions of the MSWB, was cramped already. She requested to have a smaller desk, but that request was already almost a month pending. Mami could only sigh.

Just as Mami sank into her seat, the glass doors to the workspace swung open and the fiery red-haired cadet marched into the room biting a cigarette stick. Kyouko's eyes met with Mami's before promptly turning away. Mami would put on a resolute face and turn to her work while Kyouko would ignore the presence of the Assistant Inspector altogether. This was their daily routine at the Roppongi Front Office.

That morning, though, Mami would break the routine.

"Sakura-san… do you think Sayaka and Madoka will be coming to work today?"

Kyouko turned her chair a quarter way and faced Mami with a bit of a surprised look on her face. Then, her surprise deflated as she spoke.

"I doubt it." Kyouko lit her cigarette and took a big puff, "I think Sayaka won't be too happy after what she had to do at the hospital… and you know Madoka, always rushing to everyone's side."

It was at this time that Mami received a text message from Madoka. The Assistant Inspector raised her wristband to read the text.

"_Sorry, Mami-san. I won't be making it to work today. I'm looking after Sayaka-chan at her house, you see. Just send me whatever you need me to do for today and I'll get started on it when I have the time. I hope you understand – sorry again!"_

Mami closed the window, leaned back against her chair and thought out loud,

"So, Kamijou-kun really did become a latent criminal, huh? Poor Sayaka…"

Kyouko just turned her attention back to her desk as she booted up her computer. The red-haired cadet then took one last big puff before putting her cigarette out in her ashtray. Silence once again filled the room, broken only by the occasional tap or flurry of keystrokes. Their workspace carried a very strained air whenever it was just Mami and Kyouko present.

The red-haired cadet would steal glances at the Assistant Inspector over her shoulder and was meaning to say something to lift the strained air. However, no words came to her mouth and the silence remained.

…

"_Good morning – it's time to get up._"

The automated voice played in the speakers of the mental health facility, filling the halls of the holding cells and the inmates' cells as well.

"_To all of the latent criminals, be sure to keep on working on purifying your hue._"

Kyoukusuke Kamijou's face was pale as he heard that automated voice play in his own white, padded cell. His horrified eyes then turned to his hands. The left hand, now without a cast, was battered and twisted and felt cold to the touch. That hand truly was beyond the point of repair. Then, Kyousuke noticed the marks of handcuffs on his wrists – the handcuffs that his own childhood friend had arrested him with. Bitterness swelled up in his heart and he started to weep.

"_Be sure to keep on working on purifying your hue…_"

He was a latent criminal now – that much was clear. His life was ruined. His career as a violinist was definitely over. His future disappeared before his very eyes. Thinking about that made the young man's emotions flare out.

"I DON'T DESERVE THIS!"

As soon as Kyousuke shouted, the bright white lights of his room became dark red. The automated voice then broadcast solely into Kyousuke's room.

"_Your hue has changed. It is now Dark Grey._"

A group of nurses rushed to the ballistic glass barrier of Kyousuke's cell and watched as tranquilizer gas filled his room. Kyousuke realized his mistake and jolted up to protest, but it was too late. The gas kicked in and his legs quickly lost their strength. The furious young man then pathetically fell on his knees then face-first on the floor.

"Please don't exert yourself too much… you're still recovering after all." One of the nurses advised Kyousuke through an intercom, "Your hue will stabilize soon if you focus. If you stabilize well enough, then you will be allowed to face visitors."

Kyousuke didn't react. It wasn't just because of the sedation that was numbing his senses. The privilege of visitors didn't appeal to him. After all, who would want to visit a latent criminal like himself?

Just before he blacked out, though, Kyousuke noticed something from where he lay. Beneath his bed, he saw traces of drawings and writings made in marker pen ink. The drawings, from what he could make out in the darkened room, were faded but looked like a sketch of a girl. As for the writings, though, Kyousuke noticed that all of them were written in the Latin alphabet. All of them read the same thing,

'Sis Puella Magica'

'Sis Puella Magica'

'Sis Puella Magica'

'Sis Puella Magica'

Then, Kyousuke's senses slept.

…

Inspectors Kougami and Ginoza stood at the opposite ends of Shion Karamori's analysis laboratory that afternoon. The analyst that called herself the 'Goddess of Analysis' sat lazily in front of the room's many computer screens while Division 01's three enforcers, Yayoi Kunizuka, Mitsuru Sasayama and Tomomi Masaoka sat together on the room's lone couch. Enforcer Masaoka, a strong middle-aged man sat in between Enforcers Kunizuka and Enforcer Sasayama at Yayoi's request. That day marked the female Enforcer's first month on the job and she had her butt grabbed by Enforcer Sasayama more than ten times already.

"Don't you even dare try to grab my butt, Mitsuru-kun." Tomomi jokingly whispered at Enforcer Sasayama's expense, "I tell you, it won't end pleasantly for you if you try."

Enforcer Sasayama grimaced at the joke, torn between laughing and feeling disgusted. Tomomi saw this and grinned. He seemed to be the only one in Division 01 other than Shinya who could manage the maverick Enforcer. Sasayama just chose to light himself a cigarette and 'try' to pay attention to the meeting.

"The analysis I did on the three dead foreigners came back last night and I didn't like what I saw." Shion brought up her data onto the screens, "There's no doubt about it, the rigor mortises were induced and traces of plastination resin was found in their bloodstreams - the same resin we found in that last case we haven't cracked."

"Plastination again, huh?" Tomomi spoke out, "That makes these three the third, fourth and fifth victims this quarter..."

The middle-aged Enforcer then paused, "But there's definitely something different between these three and the first two victims."

"You're right..." Yayoi added, sitting up straight as she spoke, "The first two victims were turned into artistic sculptures by the killer and were hidden rather well. The latter, three, however, were all just sprawled out and were left where they lay. I say that we are looking at two different killers here."

"But..." Sasayama then spoke as well, "These two killers must have some sort of link together. They used the same kind of plastination resin after all... Someone has to be pulling their strings."

"And that someone would be...?" Inspector Ginoza asked the Enforcer.

"I... don't know yet." Sasayama lowered his head, "Give me some more time, I'll dig into this - you'll see."

"Again with your theories..." Nobuchika grew irritated, "Focus on the matters at hand. We are going after two killers on the loose and we're dealing with an antisocial anarchist group rooted in the city to boot. We don't have the time or manpower to go chasing after phantoms."

"But Gino!" Sasayama complained

"Sasayama... calm down." Shinya intervened, "What Gino meant to say was that we'll take down our tangible targets first. If we can apprehend our killers, then surely, we can find out whether or not this string-puller exists. We need to have priorities."

"Y-you're right..." Sasayama gave in.

"Besides," Shinya spoke consolingly, "once Provisional Division 06 is operational, we'll be able to investigate those ties further. Now let's get this discussion going again - we still have a lot of things to cover."

"No kidding." Shion sighed as she lit a cigarette as well, "First of all - why were these three victims all foreigners. Secondly, the three of them had no papers with them. How did these foreigners manage to sneak into the country?"

...

"Well then, that's that…" Kyouko heaved a sigh and stretched in her chair. "I'm done with my reports for today. And it's already 5PM too."

"Ah, good work today, then, Sakura-san." Mami replied, peering over from behind her desk. "You'll be headed out, then?"

"Of course." Kyouko shut down her computer then sprung up from her chair, "I don't feel like spending my free time cooped up in this concrete box after all."

Mami pouted at Kyouko's response. The red-haired cadet was always like this. If she gave a little more thought into her work, then she might very well be on her way towards an Assistant Inspector position – but that's just the type of person Kyouko was. Despite that, Kyouko did her work and she did it well. Mami couldn't complain.

"Well then, take care, Sakura-san."

"Yeah, yeah…" Kyouko waved lazily without looking at Mami. She then stepped out of the workspace, leaving Mami alone.

Mami closed her eyes and sank into her seat. "I could probably call it a day too…"

She raised up her wristband and brought up her daily schedule. According to her schedule, she was going to work at the office well into the night. With a small smile on her lips, she dragged down her time-line and ended her work hours at 5PM. Her schedule was almost always occupied by work, so she figured it wouldn't hurt to take a break every now and then.

The Assistant Inspector then walked through the workspace and passed by the desks of her two absent cadets. An idea then came to mind.

'I should get them something on my way home.'

Mami nodded pleasantly at her own idea and trotted out of the Roppongi Front Office. There was a nice bakery in the Grace Hill mall that was near Sayaka's and Madoka's apartment. She had been meaning to try out the bakery's new sweet rolls. Madoka and Sayaka were always fond of sweet things – the rolls would help raise their spirits a little bit. On her way out of the Front Office's doors, though, she came across a rather familiar face – a girl with flowing, dark hair and purple eyes.

"… Akemi-san?"

The girl turned to Mami in surprise,

"… Mami-san…"

"It really is you, Akemi-san! Homura Akemi!" Mami was absolutely delighted, "I haven't seen you since Middle School in Mitakihara!"

Homura was cautious to reply as she weighed her actions carefully. At the corner of her eye, a hue check scanner was watching her but it did not go off. The police drones near the entrance of the Roppongi Front Office seemed to not mind her either. She sighed in relief.

"Yeah…" Homura now seemed a little bit happy as well, "You still wear those curls in your hair, I see."

"Well… I've grown to like them." Mami laughed, playing around with her curls for a bit, "And you've ditched the glasses and the twintails."

"I felt like it was time to make a change." Homura replied with a bit of a sly smile,

"I can see that, yeah…" Mami agreed, "It does suit you though."

"Thanks."

"So then, Akemi-san, what brings you to the Capital?"

Homura's cheerfulness then instantly vanished and a moment of silence fell between the two of hem.

"Actually…" Homura's tone grew serious, "It's a long story… and I was hoping you would hear me out."

**To Be Continued**


End file.
